Spain just proved too much for the Gilas boys to stay unbeaten in Group A of the FIBA U17 World Cup with a 2-0 card.
Spain flexed its muscle and dealt Gilas Pilipinas Youth a rude 96-34 beating in the FIBA U17 World Cup at the Sinan Erdem Dome in Turkey on Monday (PH time), July 1.
Maximo Garcia-Plata led all scorers with 15 points he embellished with seven rebounds and nine assists.
Guillermo del Pino fired 14 points, while Ignacio Campoy and Eric del Castillo chipped in 13 apiece.
Spain, which was coming off an 89-63 win over Puerto Rico in the opener, sits atop Group A with a 2-0 record while the Philippines fell to a 0-2 hole after also suffering a 59-point beatdown, 48-17, to Lithuania a day prior.
Behind Del Pino and Del Castillo, the Spaniards imposed their might from early on, opening the match on a 30-2 tear. The duo combined for 18 points in the first quarter.
Gilas’ only field goal came in the 5:12 mark of the opening period when Joaquin Ludovice scored on a layup off a cut, 16-2.
It was all Spain from there.
At halftime, the Philippines was already facing an insurmountable 57-13 hill.
But Spain showed no mercy and made the Filipinos bow down to its will, leading by as many as 62 points which turned out to be the final score after Daniel Balde hit a mid-range jumper with 39 ticks left on the clock.
There was hardly any bright spot for the Fiipino dribblers, who simply did not have a riposte for the bigger and stronger Spaniards.
Bonn Ervin Daja paced Gilas with 12 points and five rebounds.
He was the lone Filipino in double figures, with Ludovice tallying seven markers and Elijah Williams and Edryn Morales contributing four each.
Gilas will have a chance to head to the knockout phase on a high when it faces Puerto Rico on July 2.